Siskiyou Crest Artist In Residence - Artist Talk

I spent 5 days at Acorn Woman Fire Lookout for an Artist Residency hosted by the Siskiyou Crest Coalition.  No electricity, no water, no town noises. Just peace, quiet and making art! (And ticks and rattlesnakes.) It was a fantastic experience - this video is an artist talk I delivered after the experience.  

Would you like to shop for the art created on this residency? Shop here.

Red Butte 

Wagner Butte

Acorn Woman Mountain

Camp Kitchen – Hippie Tuna Casserole
by Sarah Burns

If you’re a health nut, but you’re a certain age and you loved tuna casserole as a kid….. This recipe is easy to prep ahead and has ingredients you’ll probably use again at camp. 

Advice: If you’re going camping – precook the quinoa and freeze the amount you need for one meal in a container.   The frozen quinoa will help keep your cooler cold.  This meal is good for the end of a long camping trip when the cooler isn’t as cold as it was at the beginning.

SERVES 2

½ cup dry quinoa to make about 1 cup cooked.  Maybe a bit more for a big appetite. 
1 can tuna
1 onion - diced
Any veggies – we brought a small bag of frozen peas – PERFECT for tuna casserole.  Mushrooms, carrots, celery, zucchini would all be good.
Salt and pepper
Dijon mustard
Half n-half
olive oil or butter
Cheddar cheese to melt over the top.

In a full-sized cast-iron skillet, sauté diced onion, diced celery, diced carrots in butter or olive oil with salt and pepper until soft. If using diced zucchini, add that about half way through since it takes less time to cook.

Once the veg is soft, add your cooked quinoa, about a tablespoon of Dijon mustard, 1 can of tuna, drained, frozen peas and a splash of half-n-half. Add more salt and pepper and cook with the lid on until everything is fully hot and bubbly.  Add cheese (cheddar or whatever you have), replace the lid and cook til melted. 

Eat right away! Enjoy the view.

Seriously – this is so good. It brings back memories of tuna casserole but with really healthy ingredients.  I’m sure it would work with rice too.